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Have a look at these results:
http://www.seamonscc.co.uk/Results/Club_Tens_204.aspx
That's me in 26th place. I was pretty pleased with my average speed and I know I don't do enough riding to be up there with the best, but I didn't expect to be 5mph behind the quickest. not that I really knew what to expect.
Anyway, I was on my £500 decade old road bike on drops. I noticed that I was the only person there with leg hair, most people were on Bat Bikes, skin tight clothes, overshoes, aero helmets etc. What sort of difference would all that stuff make do you think? I'm not going to spunk £3k to find out, but would like an approximate measure of how much of the difference is awesomeness and how much is equipment.
Cheers
I think all that stuff would make a good couple of minutes over a 10mile TT, or so Ive been told.
Most of the stuff doesn't even make a noticeable difference until you're averaging over 25mph, and then its seconds. All adds up though. I know a guy who's gone sub 20 on a 10 on just a normal road bike. Don't think he had hairy legs though.
VERY roughly 1, maybe 2 mins if you switched to a TT bike with a good position, skinsuit, aero helmet, etc.
Position will the the biggest gain rather than the bike/wheels/etc it's just that a 'proper' TT bike will usually let you get into that position properly.
That is a decent time for on a standard road bike - particularly for a first attempt
Good breakdown of the gains to be made http://www.bikeradar.com/news/article/how-aero-is-aero-19273/ The biggest gain to be made is with clip on aero bars so with them on (and properly set up) you could knock a chunk out your time fairly inexpensively
10 places behind a dead Italian isn't bad. I'd have tham under trades description though, calling a 8.75mile TT a club 10. If you want to go faster then the most cost effective add on is a pair of tri bars, can be had for about £30 if you just want to get fitter then do a 10-15 min warm up then ride as though you are just about to throw up then put more effort in for the last 5mins. If you're not completely spent going over the line, you're not trying hard enough.
I thought there was something screwy with those average speeds! cracking time though, if it had been a full 10 i would have been very impressed!
Looking at the times of the faster riders, I'm guessing that it is a fairly rough lumpy course? In which case, tri bars, suits, pointy hats won't make as much difference as a good position and practice.......find a nice fast course, then it's possibly worth investing in that kind of stuff.
On my local club 10 course I could only do a short 23, where as my PB is 21.20 but on a fast course, same bike, kit etc.
Cheers chaps, useful info. Ironically I had the bike set up with tri-bars and bar-end gears etc until a month or so ago, swapped them off as they were a pain to change gear on and sold the bits as I wasn't planning on needing them. Might get some clip ons at some point, but want to do a few to judge progress really as that's why I was there rather than out and out speed.
Anyway, course is here:
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/80523713
Not overly lumpy, but a bit of a climb out of the turn around point and a few minor inclines. Was very quick conditions last night, no wind etc. Think that there's room to improve my pacing based on the correlation between my heart-rate and the course profile. Looks like I went off too fast and lost time while I recovered from that, but you live an learn.
The one thing I don't have a clue about is warm ups when it comes to cycling? Rode the 10 miles there from home as my warm up, but had an hour between that and racing, I did a couple of minutes with some sprints in just before I started.
Cheers
For warmups you need to be sweating for a 10m TT. I do an easy 20 minutes then do hard (up to my level 4zone HR which is around 173) and hold it for 1 minute
Do 3 of these and you're sorted. You need to create that 2nd wind effect.
It's also better to gradually build up. I used to make the mistake of going off far to hard and paying for it.. You need to build it up.. hard but controlled. The last mile is all out though
never seen an 8.75 mile TT though. Seems very strange
Ok, thanks for that, that's exactly how I would race when I was running instead, so not sure why I went off like a headless-chicken! Will study the data and chill the **** out next time! Will try a harder warm up too. I did get a lot out over the last mile and was swimming in lactic at the end, so I did recover, just not an optimum strategy.
It's a low-key Club training race thing really, I did one 6 or 7 years ago when it was a 10, I presume the funny distance is a function of road safety requirements.
Ta.
Done a season of tt's last year all on a road bike. Most of the courses are "sporting" which is code name for hilly. The more hills the higher up the results sheet I am which gives you an idea of the aero advantages. I wouldn't bother launching loads of cash at a tt bike just yet. Biggest gains per pound are what you want and these are clipon bars, shoe covers, skinsuit, aero-helmet. Should be able to get a significant advantage for £200.00 and no negative effect when it gets hilly. You will probably need to learn to ride with the kit though (no point having the silly hat if you stare at the floor with the tail pointing to the sky, no point having clipons if the front end is so high it's less aero than the road bike etc.) If you really get into it then wheels, bike and maybe some time in a Velodrome with a power meter is on the cards (cheaper way of testing drag than a wind tunnel) but the gains become more and more marginal and the price only gets higher. So you probably do have a bit more "free speed" to gain but at the end of the day the guy winning isn't there because he has the biggest cheque book.
Forgot to add, hair on your legs doesn't make any difference what so ever Aerowise. It seams to be the "done" thing but I have never bothered and haven't noticed anyone looking down their nose ether at E123 crits, track races, tts or otherwise so personally I wouldn't bother unless you really want "the look".
Iain
As for the shaved leg situation, there are 2 real reasons that pros get their legs shaved. It firstly makes the leg much easier to clean up if you've been in a crash and have bleeding and the second is that it makes the legs easier to massage. Quite a few roadies get their legs shaved more because it's a bit of a faux pas to have lycra shorts and hairy legs though to be honest.
Seamons 🙂 - my brother in law usually forgets to mention it was on Seamons course when he is bragging about 'mid 21s'
£40 for some clip on aero bars and a decent set of race tyres and a HRM to train with and evens is pretty easy on a STD road bike. Evens is 21 minutes dead on that course. It's an averagely flat course not a sporting one.
Anyway 25 mph avg is what to aim for. You want to do one hard set of 85% max heart rate intervals per week
Start 3 x 10 mins 5 mins recovery then when you feel the last one is getting easier switch to 1 x 20 building to 30
This where you will find out that the fun in road bike racing is masochistic 🙂
Some nice photos of the event at that site... I like this chaps bike...
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Oh yes, I was admiring his bike. There were quite a few retro fixies out last night. Right, you can assess my aero-style if you like:
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Well you can knock a minute off by just adopting a less 'popping to the shops' position first off 😉
Ditch your bottle cage, rear light, computer and peak. Get your back flat by dropping the bars. Pin your jersey to you shorts, or get one that fits. Zip it right up too. Bring your elbows in.
Quite a nice flat back you have there.
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^ This is OK, but I'd want to be lower and my hands in the drops.
If you get a few flat bits you can rest your elbows on the tops and clasp your hands togetehr in front of you for the 'unmodified road bike' honors ...
Not that I'm a TT expert - ****in hate them!
a la:
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They used to run their club tens over the regulation distance, but the former route was deemed too dangerous.
I've been meaning to get down to this for a couple of years. Seems friendlyish to TT newbies from your description. Don't suppose you saw any groups riding down from the Alty direction?
Ooooh, you'll catch yer death, lovey, with your back all showing like thatyou can assess my aero-style if you like
White shoes already? I don't think you can improve at all
Aha, my local club TT. Did a handful of them last year, fastest was 22:59 on my standard road bike. Might try some clip-on bars this year.
Wasn't riding last night, have ****ed my back. Shame, the conditions were absolutely perfect.
Ditch your bottle cage, rear light, computer and peak
Rear light is compulsory for that event.
They used to run their club tens over the regulation distance, but the former route was deemed too dangerous.
Yeah, we only use the 10 course once a year now for our club champs.
Nice one chaps, yes all very friendly.
Yes I did realise that the white shoes were where all the speed was, I was planning to start out with regulation black shoes but a mate said these didn't fit him and did I want them for £50. I did. I forgot to check the colour with him first, but they do match the bike, if not my prowess. They're probably worth more than the bike!
There is absolutely no way I'm resting my elbows on top of the bars. No way at all. Admittedly it would feel safer if I sorted the headset bearings out so the bike wasn't all rattly, but still no having any of that!
Re my t-shirt, I was planning to wear my MMB race top, but I didn't think it would do to rock up all covered in mud!
Your back is nice and flat so drop your bars a bit (onto top of headtube) if you can - else get some clipons with a low rise and you will be faster. Aero bars also support you'd weight better so you can take the pain and suffering better - IMO you will progress quite quickly if you work out how to take the pain. You look fit and in good shape have a decent position for your first go so take the pain 🙂
Bottle cage on downtube is ok - with a bottle in it - it means less air can go through the main frame triangle and is a smidge more aero
If people dong believe that I will be able to google academic study which backs it up - drinking from it is a different matter
DJB go to bikeshak in Alty and they will help you out
Pretty good time that for your first 10. Clearly the secret to a fast 10 is to find a nice short one 😉
As for the shaved leg situation, there are 2 real reasons that pros get their legs shaved. It firstly makes the leg much easier to clean up if you've been in a crash and have bleeding and the second is that it makes the legs easier to massage.
although this is true to an extent, I remember a pro saying in an interview (can't remember who, sorry) that the main reason is it makes your calves look bigger
Er, mountain bike forum - who cares...
No it isn't. My mountainbike never goes on this website, don't think it can actually read and write?
This is for the people that get out and ride first and foremost.
'It's not about the bike'
Er, mountain bike forum - who cares...
No, it's a Mountain bike magazine. If you look at the top the link under Forums says [u]Bike Forum[/u] not mountain bike forum.
I was there, weather was perfect.
24.26 for me (which is a PB, but only the second time I've done it).
Mate takes it pretty seriously, I'm just there as it's an excuse to get out.
Although saying that I may train a little for the next one 😉
I always hated TTs with a passion, still did loads rather badly.
And now I'm stranely drawn to having another go. When I did my last one brake cables still came out of the top of the levers.